New Experiences
by Mr. Koiwai
Summary: Gabu and Mei try out each other's food.


"Well, I have no problem with it." comes the goat's soft reply as he gazes up from the bloody, mauled deer, and into the wolf's eyes.

The wolf blinks, shocked that the herbivore was so willing to try to eat...meat.

After the first night spent in the new forest they discovered, they both agreed to try new things: Having been through so many unique trials together, they decided that going a step further into the unknown would highten their friendship.

So when the wolf trotted off to go hunting, the goat curiously went along. Mei sat back calmly- even apologizing once or twice to the selected prey as the wolf seperated a young deer from it's mother then bit down with a bloody snap onto it's neck.

But when Gabu jokingly suggested the goat try to eat some meat, the answer came as a horrible shock.

Standing there now, with Mei blinking his large eyes at him, Gabu feels coldly ill.

His left ear twitched, and his mouth hangs open in awe. One paw reaches up to rub the back of his neck. "Uhhh..." he says uncertainly.

But Mei smiles, his tail wagging slightly as he agrees with himself: "We both agreed to be open to new experiences, Gabu. But..." his faces falls, turning into a guilty stare. "If you're uncomfortable with me doing this...I wont-"

The wolf forces a laugh between his bloodied teeth. "Dont be silly!" he says in his rumbling voice. Tasting the blood on his teeth, he flinches, then licks them off, saying quickly, "Oops! I sure am messy today. I should have brough a napkin..."

The little goat laughs, then walks up to the corpse of the deer. The thick smell of blood sends Mei's insticts screaming for him to run.

_But it's already dead_, Mei reminds himself inwardly. _It cant hurt me. _His body steadied, he leans in to take a nibble from the deer's exposed throat, where a blackish clot of blood forms around a large, bleeding hole. Changing tactics, Mei sticks out his tongue and laps at the wound.

He continues this for quite some time, tasting it, accepting it. He sticks his head in a little further, his face burrowing into the hole. Blood slides onto his back, leaks heavily from under his burried chin.

"Uhhh...Mei...?"

With alert politeness, the goat jerks his head out of the neck and, turning, says, "Yes, Gabu?" But seeing the wolf's alarmed expression, he says, "Gabu, is something the matter?" The goat's face is completely red- dripping wih chilling wetness. Seeing Gabu's quiet gaze settle o his forehead, he brings a hoof up and wipes the blood off his fur. It smudges, turning his fur pink. "Haha!" says Mei cheerfully. "I guess we both could use some napkins!"

The wolf opens his mouth to speak, his paws nervously rubbing together. "Did you..enjoy that?" asks Gabu slowly.

"Gabu, you still look distressed..." says Mei quietly. "Are you okay?"

"Me?" the wolf blinks, then grins. "Never better! Eh-heheh...I'm just surprised you were so willing to eat the deer!"

"Well, you asked me to." replies Mei sweetly. "I will do anythig you tell me, Gabu. I trust you with my life."

Gabu blushes._ Should I really tell him I was joking? _he thinks frantically. _Is it okay for him to eat meat and...enjoy it? _Even as he thinks this, he sees the goat digging it's head back in for more. _Something about this is wrong to me... _thinks Gabu. He watches a pool of blood stream out and splash onto the grass.

_Grass!_

A grin spasms onto his face and, excitedly, he drops to the ground and begins shoveling handfuls of grass into his mouth. "Hey, Mei!" he says, chewing. His throat tense, and his gag reflexes shudder as the chewed grass turns bitter in his mouth. "Mei!" he says again.

The goat looks at him, blood sprinkling the ground as it falls from his face, then he laughs. "If you dont like it, you dont have to eat it!" he says good naturedly.

The wolf gags, then swallows a lump of sharp cud, which turns his stomach. He grins, showing off bits of greenery wedged between his fangs. "But I do like it!" he protests quickly. His ears flattening, eyes squinting, he adds with a smile, "You dont have to eat that deer if you dont like it!"

"Oh, it _is_ different..." says Mei. He licks his lips, then says, "But like I said before: I'm open to new experiences. Arent you?"

"Yeah...Yeah!" the wolf nods suddenly, finding the answer. "You're right! I may not like this grass very much, but at least I can say I tried it!"

"But Gabu, you told me you liked the grass..." his large blue eyes blink sadly.

"Oh..." the wolf sighs, then sits down. He hangs his head in shame. "I only said that because you eating a dead animal made me feel...weird. I dont think it's right...-" A warm pressure pushes into his stomach. His eyes snap open and he peers down as Mei is suddeny pressing himself up against his chest like a cat, nuzzling his head into his fur.

"Nobody thought it was right for us to be friends," says the goat softly. He peers up at his friend. "But arent you happy we are?"

_I can't tell if he's manipulating me, or trying to make a point. Either way... I am very happy to be his friend. I dont think I would have survived without him. _Tears forming in his eyes, the wolf only says, "Very."

Mei smiles, the blood drying in his fur causing him to appear like a living-dead thing.

Wincing, the wolf says, "Umm...let me wash that blood off for you." And he begins licking the goat's face.

"Heheheh...Thankyou, Gabu." The goat quiets down as the wolf continues to clean him, the warmth of his tongue more accepting than the dying warmth of the deer's blood. Mei closes his eyes, a peaceful smile on his face.

Once the goat is near-white again, Gabu hesitates, then gives Mei an effectionate, lick on the face. "Okay, you're all clean now, Mei!"

The goat slowly opens his eyes, which raise up and meet the wolf's. Mei speaks, his voice hardly a whisper. "Thankyou, Ga-" he is cut off when the wolf grabs him and hugs him against his chest. Panicked, the goat struggles for a moment, then he understands. He rests his head into his dark fur.

"I love you too, Gabu..." says the goat.


End file.
